At some point in every game against Melbourne the captain has to make a stand. He has to front up to the refs and inform them that his guys are sick and tired of being chocked, wrestled, chicken winged, leg pulled and third man in chopped. Do it nicely and politely, when he is calm and collected, say, about 20 minutes in. Caution the refs that if this conduct continues then he may not be able to control his guys, that they have had enough and an all in brawl won’t look very good for anyone. But it is so bad and so consistent that it’s intolerable. Every game is televised and the refs miked, so there is nowhere for them to hide, everyone will know what was said. The very next tackle will be examined with a microscope. Melbourne will know this and either be baited into even worse or back off a notch, either way it’s a win.
It’s a disease on the game and needs to be stopped.
Go Dogs